Between Two Worlds

Chapter Three: Aching Old Wounds

Liora

I wanted to roll my eyes at Rogan’s words, but I knew he was right. I knew better than anyone how it feels when someone vanishes from your life without a single explanation. The sharp sting of abandonment never really fades—it just lingers in the shadows, waiting to remind you of the void. Loneliness had been my constant companion for years now, whispering cruel truths in the stillness of the night. It was a weight I carried every day.

Not that Camwen would understand loneliness the way I do. He had never truly been alone. He had many friends. With his easy charm and unwavering loyalty, he had a place in this pack that I never did. People adored him, respected him—even loved him.

The total opposite of me. I had always been an outsider. The siren who didn’t belong in the world of wolves.

I wasn’t just lacking friends in this pack—everyone here clearly despised me. I knew better than to expect that. Every glare, every whispered insult behind my back reminded me I was not welcome here. I only had three people in my life who genuinely and deeply cared about me, and Camwen used to be one of them.

Or at least, he was seven years ago.

Now? I wasn’t so sure anymore.

I inhaled deeply a few times, steadying my frayed nerves. I needed to calm myself, this way I could resist the urge to lash out at Rogan. The hostility from the patrol guards earlier had rattled me more than I wanted to admit, leaving me on edge. Their unprovoked hatred scraped at my composure and left me feeling raw and restless. The memory of their disdain churned within me like a restless storm. I wanted to punch something—or someone.

And Rogan? Rogan had a very punchable face. With his perfectly chiseled features and infuriatingly smug expression, seemed like a worthy candidate. His square jaw, sharp cheekbones, and those irritatingly piercing emerald eyes practically screamed, Hit me.

But of course, that wasn’t an option.

For the Light God’s sake, why was I thinking about that? Or even noticing how handsome he was? Ugh.

I shook my head, willing the thought away. Losing control wasn’t an option and it was not the time for distractions either. I’d practiced this for weeks, perfecting my words and my tone until they felt natural. I wasn’t about to let my temper ruin everything. I couldn’t let one snide Alpha or his smug patrol knock me off course nor could I let my emotions spiral out of control, not when I’d worked so hard for this.

This wasn’t about me. It wasn’t about how much I wanted to scream at him or knock the smugness off his face. This was about gaining his trust, breaking through the walls he’d already put up between us. And being rude—or violent—wouldn’t get me anywhere.

So, I willed myself to take another breath, forcing a soft, neutral smile, while steadying my nerves. When I finally spoke, my voice was calm, almost neutral, but there was a softness to it—a vulnerability I couldn’t quite hide.

The words that left my lips were ones I’d been rehearsing—not for Rogan, but for Camwen, the one who deserved them most.

"Look, Alpha Rogan," I began carefully, using his title deliberately and to keep things formal. "I know what I did… what I chose to do… was wrong in everyone’s eyes. I know disappearing the way I did hurt Camwen, that vanishing like that wasn’t how I should’ve handled things. But you have to understand—there were things beyond my control. I didn’t have a choice back then. And the answers Camwen wanted… I couldn’t give them to him. Not then."

My voice cracked on the last words, coming out quieter than I’d intended, a whisper that barely reached his ears.

Rogan’s expression hardened, disappointment carving itself deep into his face. The sight of it was enough to shrink me down to nothing—a rare and unwelcome sensation. I wasn’t a scared little girl anymore. I wasn’t some fragile thing that could be crushed under the weight of his disappointment. I was strong, powerful even, and I refused to let him—or anyone else—make me feel otherwise.

And yet, I hated the way he made me feel.

But this wasn’t about my pride. This was Camwen. My family. And I’d let him down. I’d abandoned him without a proper goodbye.

Rogan’s reaction was nothing less than I deserved. Whatever hatred or disdain Rogan felt toward me now was well-deserved. His icy demeanor, his thinly veiled disdain—it all stemmed from my choices. Choices I couldn’t fully explain.

Not yet.

Still, knowing that didn’t make his next words hurt any less.

“Whatever reason you have for your actions, save it,” he said coldly, his voice devoid of any trace of empathy. “Nobody here wants to hear it.” Rogan scoffed, his smirk sharp enough to cut.

His words stung, but I refused to let them show. I’d known this would be difficult—nothing about this situation had ever been easy. But I hadn’t anticipated the suffocating weight of his indifference.

I bit the inside of my cheek, swallowing the retort that burned on my tongue. This was going to be harder than I’d imagined. Not that I’d expected hugs and warm welcomes, but part of me had hoped Rogan might at least listen.

Instead, he looked at me like I was something that needed to be dealt with—a nuisance, a problem to be solved.

I met his gaze, refusing to back down. For a brief moment, I let my emotions show, hoping he’d see how much this mattered to me. trying to convey the raw truth of my emotions without saying another word. I wasn’t asking for forgiveness, but I wanted him to understand I was being honest.

I wanted him to see how much this mattered to me. To see me.

That’s when I made a mistake.

Looking into Rogan’s eyes too long, too deeply, was like opening the wrong door. Suddenly, I felt the pull—an electric, magnetic force wrapping around us, drawing us closer, like an invisible thread tying us together. It was so intense and undeniable that it stole the breath from my lungs.

Rogan’s eyes widened slightly, a flicker of confusion breaking through his stoic facade. And from the way he tensed, I knew he felt it too.

The necklace hidden beneath the fabric of my dress began to glow faintly, its warmth growing against my skin. Alarm prickled at the back of my mind as panic surged through me. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

No. Not now. Not like this.

I tore my gaze away, clutching the necklace tightly in my hand as if the physical contact would quell its warmth. The heat dissipated slightly, but the damage was done. The connection between us, raw and electric, lingered in the air like a storm about to break.

Rogan cleared his throat and inhaled sharply, his expression was unreadable and his shoulders stiffened as he looked me up and down. Finally, he broke the silence.

“A dress?”

I blinked, startled by the unexpected question that caught me off guard. “What?”

Rogan gestured vaguely at my clothes. "You never wore dresses before. Always black leather pants, a white shirt, and a vest. But this?" His tone was almost casual, like we weren’t standing on the edge of a storm.

Was it really just me who was flabbergasted by his sudden words?

I looked down at the flowing white dress, its fabric smooth beneath my hand, and the matching slippers on my feet. I arched a brow at him, struggling to grasp why he cared.

As if sensing my confusion, Rogan clarified, "It’s a first for you."

I was momentarily thrown by the abrupt shift in conversation. He was commenting on my clothes? Of all the things to focus on…

For a moment, I just stared at him and wondered if he was trying to lighten the mood, but the look in his eyes told me otherwise. He wasn’t mocking me. If anything, he seemed… intrigued.

My fingers brushed over the soft fabric of my flowing white dress, tracing the subtle embroidery at the hem. It was simple, yet elegant, a stark contrast to the leather pants and boots I used to wear.

Leaning against the nearest tree, he crossed his arms like we were two old friends sharing a lazy afternoon in the woods. The shift in his demeanor was so sudden, it left me reeling, because before I could respond and just as quickly, Rogan’s expression hardened again, his Alpha mask slipping back into place. His voice dropped into a more serious tone.

"Look," he said, avoiding my eyes now. "I’m not going to say I understand why you left—because I don’t. You could’ve handled things differently." He exhaled sharply, his frustration evident. "But Camwen—he saw you as family. When you left, it was like he lost a sister and like losing a part of himself. So yeah, I get why he’s angry. Why we’re all angry.”

He paused, his voice softening slightly. “But if you think you can just walk back into his life without consequences, you’re wrong. You might have your reasons, but that doesn’t change what you did. So I hope you understand why I’m asking you to leave. It’s nothing new for you, right? Disappearing?"

Ouch.

I flinched inwardly at the barb, his words cutting deeper than I cared to admit. For a brief moment, I thought I’d glimpsed a softer side of him. but any warmth I'd imagined in his tone vanished, leaving only the sting of his final words.

But Rogan—Alpha Rogan—couldn’t resist throwing salt on old wounds. He was far too good at it. He had a talent for finding the sore spots and pressing just hard enough was maddening.

And yet, here I was—still determined to prove myself

“I’m not asking for forgiveness,” I said quietly. “I just… I just want a chance to make things right.”

Rogan scoffed, his lips curling into a bitter smile. “Make things right? You’ve been gone for seven years, Liora. You think a few words are going to fix that?”

“No,” I admitted. “But it’s a start.”

For a moment, we stood in silence, the tension between us as thick as the forest air. My hand tightened around the necklace, its faint warmth a reminder of the bond I couldn’t afford to acknowledge—not yet.

“Fine,” Rogan said finally, his voice gruff. “You want to try? Then prove it. But don’t expect me to make it easy for you.”

It wasn’t much, but it was more than I’d hoped for.

As Rogan turned to leave, I let out a shaky breath, my gaze drifting to the horizon. The path ahead was uncertain, but one thing was clear: this was only the beginning.